Into The Light
by Hyde's Bride
Summary: After coming back to life, Spike is finally reunited with Buffy just in time for Angel to show up with info on a plot to eviscerate the human race, not to mention his possession of a mystery serum. SPUFFY. Post Angel finale.
1. Loves Return

**A/N: Hey everyone! Welcome to my very first Spuffy story! I have to say I am extremely nervous about it since I only ever write Jackie/Hyde from That 70s Show, but I just couldn't resist the Buffy/Spike love. They are seriously one of the greatest couples in tv history, so I hope that my depiction of them goes over well with my lovely Spuffy fans!! So this is set a couple of months after the Angel finale. Spike has spent these months scouring the globe looking for Angel since they were separated in the battle against the overwhelming number of demons. Meanwhile, Buffy is running a new school for all the slayers in Italy. I won't give anything else away, except to say, I hope you like it, and please review!**

**This story is dedicated to my new SSS friends! They have all been so nice and supportive of me!! And I can't forget my friend Julie. She has seriously been a huge support through my Buffy journey, and I just love her to bits!**

**Chapter 1: Loves return**

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"Master, everything is in place." The spindly gray demon spoke with a smile upon is distorted, unshapely face.

"Ah yes, a mere fortnight remains until this world shall be mine." With a deep, menacing voice, he exulted his pure joy at the thought of his plans and the pain he would cause. He was a towering creature, standing over seven feet tall. His skin a gloomy shade of yellow, his eyes glittering blue. He had horns upon his head, resembling those of a ram. His body was muscular and the sight of him exuded sheer terror. His teeth were sharp and so large, they could not fully fit in his mouth, so they were barred, adding to the animal quality he possessed.

"Yes master, the humans will not stand a chance." His much smaller by comparison, crony chirped, his pointed ears waggling in excitement.

"That they will not. Bring me the prisoner." He ordered.

"As you wish, master." He bowed as he began to back up, never turning his back on his leader.

As his gray hide exited the large tent, it was illuminated by the many burning torches along the camp. He made his way down the rows of tents until he approached one that was being guarding by two charcoal colored demons with broad chests and no necks.

"The master wishes to see the vampire." He instructed the guards as they pulled the canvas of the tent aside to reveal…

"Where is the prisoner?!" The twitchy demon barked.

"He was here…He must have escaped." One of the guards frantically responded.

"You fools! The master will have your heads for this. Find him!"

One of the guards sounded a horn. At the sound, all the other demons in the camp gathered their weapons and approached him, while their leader made his way over as well.

"Why have you sounded the horn of Aurelian?" He bellowed.

The ashen skinned servant chuckled in nervousness "It appears that the prisoner has escaped."

"What?! He is of great importance to me!"

Just then another neck-less demon approached the group. "Master, it appears that the prisoner has taken the serum."

The growl of the large beast was immeasurable. He grabbed an axe, and without a second thought, decapitated his gray, pointy-eared counterpart, before facing the ranks.

"You must find me the vampire, or you all shall meet the same fate as Gorkin." To demonstrate his point, he lifted the severed head and mounted it on a spike.

"Go! Find me the prisoner! I want him alive!"

As these orders were being given, a vampire was running as fast as his legs would carry him. He was weakened, having been a prisoner of these demons for months. They had barely provided him enough blood to survive. He was tortured with manifested sunrays and holy water. Through it all he would not give in. He would not help them achieve their ultimate goal. Now as he ran through the jungle, tired, aching, and barely clothed, he knew what he must do. He must get to her. Only then could a way to stop these demons be revealed, and there was the precious serum. The serum that could, perhaps, make the future much brighter for him, and her, for that matter.

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It was a cool night in the ancient city as his leather coat blew in the breeze. It made him feel young, being here, something that was very rare, for he was quickly approaching a century and a half years of age. There weren't many things that made him feel truly young, but simply standing in this city, that was thousands of years his senior, did the job. There was really only one other force that could bring him crashing down to his knees in awe, and it too was a vision of beauty and strength, of timelessness and heroism. It was her golden hair, the way she carried herself, her beautiful body, and her sweet face. Even that cute little nose of hers was enough to melt his cold non-beating heart. It had been over a year since he had locked eyes with her, but the passion in his tortured soul, never ceased to burn as bright as the sun. Perhaps that was the reason his love for her hurt so much. It was as if having the sun inside him, and he was a vampire after all. Spike leaned his back against the street lamp, smoking a cigarette, as he stared up at the building before him. Buffy was in there. His love was in there.

"Okay, so remember, you cannot allow yourself to get distracted. If you take your attention away from the mission at hand for even a moment, it could be your last." She spoke with confidence as she looked on at the thirty girls before her.

Buffy Summers never thought she had what it took to be a teacher, to instruct young girls on anything, let alone the proper skills needed to be a slayer. Sure, she was good at it, but to pass on her knowledge to others, she just never believed possible. That is until her last year in Sunnydale. It was then that she took on the role of mentor to many potential slayers. She imparted all the wisdom she had on them. It didn't always go as she planned, but when the final battle came, they used, not only the slayer strength that Willow's spell gave them, but more importantly the skills they had learned from Buffy herself over the previous months. Together they were able to defeat the evil, and the hellmouth was destroyed. As it did whenever she thought of that day, Buffy's mind wandered to Spike. Who would have thought that he would turn out to be the champion, the world's savior? Yet, he was just that. She never could avoid the pang in her heart as she thought of him. That day, she was sure she had lost him forever, yet she had come to find out that he was back. All she wanted to do was rush to see him, but she had a responsibility to the girls and the new school they were forming, but he didn't exactly rush to her either, and to think, she told him she loved him! Instead of coming to her, he follows Angel into some unwinable fight, and gets himself killed again.

"Stupid Vampire!" She growled out, as her entire class looked at her strangely.

"Uh…stupid vampires are going to get their asses kicked by us! Yeah!" She covered her slip awkwardly before clearing her throat "So good training, ladies! I'll see you all tomorrow night, same time!"

The slayers began to gather their things and shuffle out. Buffy grabbed a white towel and patted her face with it, drying the sweat she had attained from the heavy training session with the other slayers. The training room resembled a ballet studio. It was large, with mirrors all around. Looking into the vast mirrors, Buffy pulled her long golden locks out of the ponytail. She then adjusted her hair, so she looked presentable. The top half of her body was covered in only a white sports bra,. She allowed her eyes to travel to the scar on her abdomen. A sword had pierced her there on that fateful day. She rubbed her fingers on it, as flashes of when it happened filled her senses. Not long after that the hellmouth was destroyed, not long after that he was dead. She heard a sound behind her, but looking in the reflective glass, she saw nothing.

"I guess you're just losing it, Buffy." She muttered to herself.

"Oh I think it was already lost, love."

At the sound of that voice, Buffy turned her body around in a jolt, only to come face to face with Spike for the first time since that day.

"Spike?" She asked in disbelief as they both moved slowly toward each other.

He smiled "Hello, Slayer. Miss me?"

She continued to approach him "Oh yeah. You know what I missed most?" She asked in a sweet tone.

He grinned "What's that?"

At this point she was so close, he could feel her warm breath "This…" She answered as her knee made contact with his gut.

"Ah bleeding hell! What was that for?" He towered over in pain as she kicked him again.

"What was it for?! Are you seriously asking that? God, you're an idiot!" She kicked him even harder as he landed on the floor. "How did you even get in here?"

"One of your little slayers invited me. As for you, I think you've gone off your rocker, woman." he coughed out.

"Oh I've gone off my rocker?! You're the one who comes back from the dead and doesn't say anything!" She shouted in fury.

Spike rose to his feet "Oh don't act so bloody innocent. You should have come to see me. I was the one who died and came back, you know!"

Her brow furrowed "I can't believe you're putting this on me! No, you now what? I do believe it! You are just this big bleached immature jerk! You may be over a hundred, but you don't act it!" She pinched his arm.

"Ah you pinched me, and _I'm_ the immature one?! Bottom line is, you should have come to me." He said with confidence.

"Gah! I couldn't just leave here, Spike. I have a responsibility to Giles and the girls."

"Oh yeah? What about your responsibility to me? Or have you forgotten? You know, you and your precious friends probably wouldn't be here if it wasn't for me."

She sighed and turned her back "I know that. What you did…it was great."

At the soft sound of her voice, he calmed himself. "It was no big thing."

She turned to face him again "Yes it was. Spike…you saved the world."

He placed his hands in his pockets nervously "Yeah well, I couldn't give a damn about the world. I did it for you."

Her eyes dropped to the floor as a smile grazed her face. He was always saying things like that, and though she would never admit it, they tugged on her heartstrings.

After a few silent moments, he cleared his throat, "So, you got yourself quite a school here."

Buffy nodded "Yeah, Giles thought it would be a good idea since most of the slayers are so young. This would give them 'The proper discipline and training to succeed' as he put it." They both chuckled slightly at the watcher's words.

"I'm sure you're doing a bang up job."

"I hope so. I don't think I've ever really been good at teaching." She shrugged.

He approached her "You're good at a lot of things, slayer." His cool hand caressed her cheek, and she found herself leaning into his touch. Just as he began to lean in, there was a knock at the door.

She laughed at the broken moment "Hold on."

She made her way to the door, and was shocked at the sight before her.

"Oh my god, Angel."

"Oh bloody fantastic!" Spike muttered sarcastically.

Angel was slumped over. He looked ragged and exhausted.

"Are you okay?!" Buffy's hands cradled his face, as Spike sneered at the sight.

"Yes, I just need to rest." Angel replied.

"Of course! Come in!" She insisted as she pulled him in for a hug.

"Unbelievable! I get the crap kicked out of me, and this sod gets a hug?! Where's the justice?"

Buffy frowned as she pulled up a chair for Angel "Spike, shut up."

He huffed and shut his mouth.

"Angel, what happened?" She asked with concern.

"I got separated from Spike in the fight against the Black Thorn demons, and I must have blacked out. Next thing I knew I was on a boat full of other demons. They took me to the Amazon, where I was kept prisoner for the past three months."

"Oh my god." Buffy gasped.

"Well, that explains why I couldn't find you. I looked all over, mate. You know the other two died."

Angel nodded. He knew that his other friends had died. In fact, he was shocked to see Spike alive.

"So how did you escape?" Buffy asked her first love curiously.

"It wasn't easy, but I managed. The Orkanus demons aren't very hard to fool."

"Did you say Orkanus demons? I didn't know they existed anymore." Spike seemed surprised by the news.

"Their leader, Exmaunigan, found a way of creating an army of them." The dark haired vampire informed them.

"Wait. An army?" The slayer asked somberly.

"Yes. He has created an army of demons with one purpose…to eviscerate the entire human race."

To be continued…

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**A/N: So this is just the beginning, but I hope you like it so far!! The rest of the Scooby gang will be coming in shortly! Plus you will find out the answers to everything you want to know! Please review!! Thanks!!** .


	2. Pictures and Plans

**A/N: OMG thank you SO much for the support and encouragement! I was so nervous with chapter one, since it was my first attempt at writing this universe, so it really means a lot to know that this story is well received! **

**I want to say a big thank you to my new friend, Stefania (SpuffyETERNALFLAME84)! She is has been so supportive, and even made a lovely video based of this story! Check it out on youtube! **

**And of course, Julie, whom I love and am very appreciative of!!**

**Chapter 2: Pictures and Plans **

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"You have got to be kidding me! How can you even say that?!"

"It's obviously true."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"It's okay, buddy. I'm right and you're wrong. There's no shame in that."

"You're the wrong one! It's clear as day. Timothy Dalton is a way better Bond than Pierce Brosnan!"

The sounds of Xander and Andrew's bickering echoed into the room that had been filled with a tense silence since Angel had revealed Exmaunigan's intentions of annihilating the human race. The moment Xander's remaining eye got a glimpse of the occupants of the room, it widened in shock, but being the witty man he was, it wasn't long before he came up with his perfect opening line.

"Oh look, it's the dead guys we ordered!" He couldn't help but smirk at the annoyance that was evident on both Angel and Spike's faces.

"Actually vampires are _un_dead." No one paid any attention to Andrew's correction.

"Ah it's the brilliantly poetic musings of the Cyclops. Very witty!" The bleached vampire jabbed.

"Well, I hear you would know a thing or two about lame poetic musings, William the Bloody." Xander snapped.

Angel smiled widely at the insult as Spike sneered and began to retort, before someone interceded.

"Alright, that's enough!" Buffy ordered stepping between Spike and Xander.

"He started it." The vampire muttered with a pout.

She rolled her eyes just as Andrew knocked her aside in pursuit of one thing.

"Spike!" he cheered as he pounced on him, hugging him tightly. "I thought you were dead…again."

Spike frowned slightly, at first standing awkwardly while the enthusiastic man squeezed him tightly, before he finally hugged him back, patting him on the back a couple times.

"Okay Andrew, I get it" The other three in the room couldn't help but chuckle at the fact that Andrew showed no intention of letting go.

"Really Andrew, you can let go now…" Still nothing, "Okay, get off me." Spike finally pried him off, before patting his shoulder again, "It's good to see you too. At least some one around here knows how to give a proper hello." he pointed his words at Buffy, who's eyes rolled again.

"What are you two rays of sunshine doing here anyway?" Xander asked curiously.

"End of the world and mankind, you know, the usual." Buffy responded.

"Hey, that's why your boy, Captain Forehead, is here. I just came for the food."

"Why, do Italian people taste good, or something?" Buffy's longtime friend asked through his sardonicism.

Spike grimaced in irritation "I'm talking about the pasta."

Xander nodded "Sure you are…"

Buffy sighed "Will you two seriously knock it off, and let Angel finish his story about the little old army of demons that wants to wipe out the entire human population…" Greeted with silence, she smiled "Thank you."

Angel cleared his throat "So the head demon, Exmaunigan, has created an army of Orkanus demons to be his personal guard and servants and to fight of the slayers if you attempt to stand in his way."

"You know, Tolkein based the Orks in Lord of the Rings on the legend of Orkanus demons." Once again Andrew was ignored as Spike spoke to Angel.

"How is it you know all this, mate? You sit down for afternoon tea with this Exmaunigan bloak?" Buffy would have told Spike to shut his mouth if she hadn't also been extremely curious as to how Angel seemed to know the demon's entire plan.

"He told me his plans. He wanted to use me to fight against Buffy. He knew he could get to her through me if I was Angelus." He felt weak from the past months of being held captive, but he knew he could not rest just yet.

"So what, he held you prisoner and as your punishment, he tried to force hookers on you? You poor baby." Spike's sarcasm was enough to earn him a kick in the shin from Buffy.

"I forgot how much you babble." The dark haired vampire quipped to the light haired one.

Getting back to the matter at hand, Buffy spoke "So he wanted to get you soulless to use you against me, but then what?"

"Hold the phone! How do we know this is soulful Angel and not soulless Angel?!" Xander pointed an accusing finger at the vampire.

"Well, you're not dead." Angel responded.

"Though I could arrange for that." Spike added.

"That doesn't prove anything. You could be trying to trick us." Xander didn't back down.

The blonde woman approached her friend, "It's him, Xander. Trust me, I know. I can feel it."

"Oh isn't that bloody sweet!"

"Will you shut up?!" All but Andrew shouted toward Spike.

Sighing, the slayer turned to face her first boyfriend, "Finish telling us."

He complied "Exmaunigan figured out a way of wiping out all humans. There is a porthole to Hell right here in Rome. In a little under two weeks there will be an eclipse. If the porthole is opened during the eclipse and even an ounce of human blood is dropped in, then every human being on the planet will be catapulted to a different dimension, in all likelihood, dimensions of Hell."

"I can't believe this!" Xander screeched out.

Angel nodded sadly "I know, it's horrible."

"No, I can't believe that first we live on a hellmouth, then we move to city with a porthole to Hell…I think we have some serious psychological problems."

"No arguments there." The look he received from the slayer would probably have killed a lesser vampire "I know, I'm shutting up."

Buffy was on edge now "How do we stop it?"

Angel sighed "You just have to fight them off until the eclipse is over, or…" He drifted.

"Or what?"

"If the blood of a demon is dropped into the porthole, then instead of every human getting sent to different dimensions, every demon would be." He concluded.

Her eyes widened "Oh. Well, that's not an option."

"Uh Buff, why not? I mean, think about it, no more demons in the world. That sounds pretty sweet." Xander's words made her stomach lurch.

"Xander, there are two demons in this room, and I'm not willing to force them to fight for us only to send them to hell."

Both vampires were moved by her words, but apparently her friend wasn't.

"Buffy, I know I give you a hard time about these two, but really, you need to think about this."

She shook her head "Okay Xander, would you want me to think about this if Anya were here?"

His body tensed up immediately "That's different.."

"No it's not. If Anya were alive and standing right here, would you be telling me to do something that would send every demon to another dimension?"

He sighed as his eye met the floor "No, I guess not."

"So then don't ask me to do that when people I love are at stake."

At the word love, both vampires looked up. Spike couldn't help the twinge of hope in his unbeating heart. Could she have really meant the words she uttered to him on that day at the hellmouth? A moment later he stopped himself from hoping, when it occurred to him that she was probably just referring to her precious Angel.

Angel coughed, and a slight moan escaped his lips. He was clearly exhausted. Noticing this, Buffy sighed.

"Okay, this has been a crazy night. I think we all need to get some rest. Spike, Angel, you two can stay here. Andrew can you please set Spike up in a room? Xander, help Angel. I have to call Giles, Willow, and Faith. Whatever plan we come up with, we need to all be together."

"You got it, Buff." Xander helped Angel up and helped him out of the room while Andrew put his arm around Spike.

"let's get you to your bedroom!" He chirped

Spike frowned "Oh god."

Buffy laughed slightly before walking out another door. She was greeted with a long, tall corridor. She was still getting used to this enormous new place she called home now. The past months had all been so overwhelming, and this night was the cherry on the cake. Not only did it mark the return of her ex-boyfriends, both of which she presumed dead, but one of them brought some truly terrifying news with him. They were facing another apocalypse. After all she had been through in nearly a decade, she should be used to these situations by now, but she couldn't help but feel thrown. Perhaps because it had been a pretty uneventful year, at least in the negative capacity. Well, except for the fact that she thought she lost the only two men she had ever loved, both for the second damn time, no less. But she was the slayer, the original slayer, that is. So she had to press on. That is what Buffy Ann Summers had been doing since she was fifteen, pressing on, fighting through her pain and sorrow, through all the sadness and tragedy. She could never give up. It was her duty to lead the fight against evil. Yet she couldn't help but wish that for once in her life she could know what it feels like to be normal, to not have to fight demons and vampires on a nightly basis, but some wishes never come true. That's just the way it is.

After making a few crucial international calls, Buffy made her way to a certain vampire's room. She knocked momentarily before peeking her head in. She could hear the shower running, so she made her way in. Scanning the room, her eyes met his long black coat, thrown on the floor. She picked it up as she heard a slight clanking sound. Something small and gold had dropped from the inside pocket. She lifted it from the ground. It was a small picture frame. In it was a picture of a very beautiful woman, with long dark hair. This was a woman Buffy had known quite well. Just then the bathroom door opened to reveal Angel, covered in a terry cloth robe. His eyes drifted to the picture in her hand. She smiled awkwardly.

"I was just going to hang your coat up, and Cordy's picture fell out."

He made his way over to her, taking his coat and the picture, "Thanks."

She nodded, "So, you must miss her, hah?"

Angel's eyes scanned the bubbly, smiling face of Cordelia Chase, as he felt an ache in his chest "Yeah I do."

"She was really something. I have to say, the world is definitely less interesting without her in it." Buffy observed sincerely. She hadn't always gotten along with Cordy, but she knew she was a good person, and she really loved Angel. The thought of that used to bother Buffy, but over the years it had become a comfort to know that a good woman loved him.

He smiled "Yeah it is." He tucked the picture into his coat pocket, and hung it up, "So what's up?"

She cleared her throat "I called Giles, Willow, and Faith, and told them they need to get here pronto. They should all be here by tomorrow afternoon."

Angel nodded "Great."

"Well, you're tired. I'll just let you get some sleep." She made her way to the door.

"Buffy?" he called out. She turned to face him again. He wanted to tell her about the serum that rested in his other coat pocket, but he changed his mind. Now wasn't the time.

"Thank you." Was all he spoke. She smiled and nodded before exiting his room.

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Exhausted from the night's events, Buffy made her way to her own room, where she was startled to find…

"Spike! What are you doing in here?"

He looked up from the drawer he was digging in to smile at her "Hello, love. I was just looking for you."

"Well, I'm not in my underwear drawer, you creep." She stormed over and shut the drawer forcefully.

He simply smirked at her "Nothing I haven't seen before, pet. In fact, I can picture you in some of that stuff right now." He looked her up and down as she smacked his arm.

"Do _not_ picture me in my underwear!"

He nodded "You're right. It's better with you naked."

"Ugh Spike, I forgot what a pig you could be."

He sighed "I'm just having some fun with you, is all. I missed you, Buffy."

The sincerity in his voice struck her as always. She smiled and took a seat on the bed.

"So where have you been the past few months?"

"I've spent the past three months all over the place looking for your boyfriend. Didn't get to South America though."

"Don't call him my boyfriend, or Captain Forehead, or wanker, or sod, or any other weirdo British term. He has a name." She insisted with confidence.

"I'm sorry, love. I can't help it if he's a bloody wanker."

Her green eyes rolled as he continued to survey her room. Picture of Dawn, Xander, Willow, and Giles littered the place. He was stunned beyond belief when he reached her desk. On it was a picture he remembered being taken. It was a photo of himself, Dawn, Giles, Andrew, Willow, Xander, Anya, and Buffy, taken just before Xander lost his eye. In the photo, he stood next to Buffy with his arm draped over her. At the time, he hadn't noticed, but looking at the picture now, he realized that everyone was looking at the camera, except Buffy. Her eyes were on him. He had never seen her look at him that way, at least not that he could remember. She had a smile on her face as she looked up at him. Her face seemed filled with happiness, and dare he say…love?

"The whole town was destroyed. How did you salvage this?" His words broke as he handed the silver framed picture to her.

She smiled "I had it with me that day. I knew we might be facing the end, and I just wanted the people I loved to be close to me the whole time."

Sea green eyes locked with deep blues. For a moment they stayed like that, silent, simply bathing in the infinite pools of each others' eyes. They finally broke their stare as Spike placed the frame back on Buffy's desk, where he spotted something else.

"What's this, then?" He asked curiously as he picked up the sketchpad, and flipped it open.

She jumped up "Oh that's nothing!"

He held her back as she tried to take it away. He flipped through it, amazed at what he saw. There were beautiful drawings of many Roman landmarks.

"These are good, Slayer. I never knew you could draw."

She bit her lip nervously "I can't really. They're just scribbling."

He looked her directly in the eye "No they're not. They're art, Buffy. I've been around long enough to know."

She looked away almost bashfully "Well, thanks."

Spike continued to flip through the book when he came upon something that hit him like a ton of bricks. It was him. Every curve of the face, every single detail of him was captured fully in this one sketch. If his heart still beat, it would have been racing.

"It's me." Was all he said, his voice shaky.

She grabbed the sketchbook quickly "Uh yeah…I was going to draw everyone." It was a lie, and they both knew it.

There was a moment of awkward silence before Buffy cleared her throat "We should go to bed."

Spike smiled devilishly. Buffy, noticing her slip up, tried to cover it "I mean, we should go to sleep. Alone. In our separate rooms."

He laughed "It's okay, Slayer. I can resist jumping your bones…for now."

As he left the room, Buffy sighed. How did he always make her feel like a nervous school girl, yet make her feel like a passionate woman all the same time?

"Stupid Vampire."

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"Master, everything is in play. We have our new prisoner."

"Excellent! Bring her to me."

Two large demons dragged a woman into the huge tent upon their master's orders. They dropped the chained prisoner at his feet.

"Hello there." Exmaunigan spoke with a breeziness.

"Whatever you're trying to do won't work." She spoke with conviction as her large brown eyes scanned the tent.

"Oh I assure you, it will. Molden, bring me the potion."

A gray demon with pointy ears handed over a blue vile to his boss.

"I hope you don't expect me to drink that." The prisoner said with attitude.

"No, I expect you to bathe in it." Was all he said as he opened the lid and doused her in the illuminated sapphire liquid.

At the feel of it on her skin, she screamed out in pain. It burned her down to her very soul. After a few moments of squirming, her body slowed its movements, finally stopping all together.

"Did it work?" Molden, the gray demon inquired.

The prisoner lifted her head and smiled up at Exmaunigan, her brown eyes flashing yellow momentarily.

The horned demon smiled widely "It has worked. We now have the ultimate weapon against the slayer…our very own slayer."

To be continued…

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**A/N: Thanks for reading! My birthday is on Thursday, and it would be an awesome gift to receive some reviews! I hope you liked it!!**


	3. Your Heart

**A/N: Sorry for the ridiculous delay on this. I had my birthday a little over a week ago, and since then I've been busy. I want to thank everyone for their reviews!! I've been given such a warm welcome into the Buffyverse, it's incredible!! So in this chapter I am writing all the scoobies together for the first time. I hope it works! Of course there will be Spuffiness, and triangle stuff, but come on! There is no triangle really. Oh and there is a small dream sequence. Don't let it confuse you or anything. Enjoy!! **

**Chapter 3: Your Heart**

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"Come on, pleeeeeaaaase!" The man with dirty blonde hair begged the one with much lighter locks.

"No. Bloody hell, I thought you were supposed to be cool like 007 now." Spike observed in irritation.

"I am cool. You're the one who isn't cool because you won't battle me. You're afraid I will pulverize your vampire ass!"

Spike gasped in mock fear "Yes, I'm shaking in my boots."

"You should be. I have spent many hours training with the girls." Andrew asserted.

"That I can believe." The vampire smirked at his slight jab.

Andrew didn't seem to notice the insult "Yes, the ladies love me." He paused in pride for a moment before speaking again "And I know I would destroy you!"

"What's going on?" Buffy asked as she entered the room flanked by Xander and Angel.

"Andrew wants to duel with light sabers." Spike's eyes rolled.

"Aaaww Spike, Andrew wants to bump swords with you. It's beautiful. I just knew you two crazy kids would make it." The ever-witty Xander Harris grinned as wide as the Cheshire Cat. There weren't many things he enjoyed in life more than tormenting Spike.

"Well, you would know all about sword play, wouldn't you Harris?" Spike replied.

"Hey!" Xander squeaked, not having a proper comeback.

"I know!" Andrew shouted in an appalled voice "the light saber is so much more than a sword, Spike!"

"Kind of missed the point Andrew." The dark haired man grimaced at his friend. The two nerds had bonded over the past year.

"Well, you kids need to behave. Giles should be here any minute, and you know how he feels about your bickering over 'trivial matters such as this'" Buffy spoke with a fake English accent, imitating her watcher.

Xander chuckled "Yeah, 'Would you all discontinue this frivolity, there are important matters at hand'" As he finished is mockery of the Englishman, Xander could feel a presence behind him "He's right behind me, isn't he?" He asked nervously.

Buffy nodded and Xander smiled nervously, turning to face an unimpressed Giles "Giles!" He enthused "You're looking fit! Been working out?"

The Brit simply rolled his eyes "You should know, that accent was terrible."

"Tell me about it." Spike agreed.

Xander simply laughed uncomfortably. Buffy walked briskly up to her watcher, hugging him tightly.

"It's good to see you Giles." Her voice was soft.

He smiled "Yes, you too. I only wish it was under better circumstances."

"Me too, but what kind of reunion would it be without a pending apocalypse? Where's Willow? I thought she was in London with you?"

"I'm here!" Willow announced as she pulled open the grandiose door to the massive library of the slayer school.

"Hey Will!" Buffy and Xander chirped. They hadn't seen their friend in two months.

"Hi guys!" She surveyed the room "Whoa Angel…Spike…gee golly!"

"Those were my thoughts exactly, except they were more of the 'Oh no, not these guys again' variety" Xander quipped, of course earning him an eye roll from the blonde vampire.

"Well, this can't be good. Not that it's not nice to see you both. You really are quite attractive. I mean, if I still thought of guys that way, you'd sure be at the top of the list. Not that I thought of you that way when I was into guys…" The redheaded witch yammered nervously.

Buffy smiled, "It's okay, Will. Where's Kennedy?"

"Oh she was on assignment in the states. She should be getting in tonight."

"Aren't you going to ask about your favorite girl, B?" A very familiar voice spoke out.

Buffy turned to come face to face with her counterpart, Faith Lehane, "I'm sorry Miss, but I'm not sure who you're referring to." She replied, a slight smile crossing her lips.

The dark haired slayer smirked "Nice setup you got here, B. Looks more like a place old Giles would hang in than a hot slayer."

"I beg your pardon?" Giles spoke in offense.

Faith turned her leather clad body to face the watcher "Sorry, G. If it helps you're pretty damn foxy for your age."

"Okay, this has gone to a very creepy place." The eye patch clad man grimaced as he spoke.

As the beautifully deadly woman eyed her surroundings, she was shocked to see a couple familiar faces "Angel, Spike…I thought you two croaked."

"Uh duh, Faith. These guys croaked centuries ago." Xander replied.

"I've had just about enough of your lip for one day, Blackbeard." Spike chided.

"I don't have a…Hey! That was an eye patch joke!"

"Oh aren't you the bright one. It's almost as though you have a hole in your head…Oh wait a minute!"

"I don't even think Blackbeard had an eye patch…stupid bleached vampire…"

Buffy's eyes rolled "Seriously guys, enough already!"

"Nah man, this is pretty good entertainment." Faith cheered with a grin.

"Well, we aren't here for entertainment. We're here to discuss the possible vacation of all people to hell. I hear it's nice and toasty there this time of year." Buffy added sardonically.

"Gotcha, B. What are we up against this time?"

"A demon called Exmanigan and his vast army of Orkanus demons." Angel answered somberly.

"That's it? We just gotta fight a bunch of lame ass demons. What's the big?" Faith asked cockily.

"The big is that Exmaunigan has found a way to open a porthole that could send every human being to hell dimensions in less than two weeks." The tall, dark, and handsome vampire replied.

Her eyes widened slightly "Okay, guess it's kinda big. How do we deal?"

"They have to drop human blood into the porthole during the eclipse. We have to just hold them off until it's over." The blonde slayer spoke resolutely.

"We just fight 'em off. Now that's something I can get into." Faith said with a nod of her head and a crack of her knuckles.

"It won't be that simple. This army…they're not just common demons. They were created with the specific purpose of destroying anyone or anything that stands in the way of their leader's goal." Angel sighed "Exmaunigan is not to be taken lightly. He is very powerful and very smart. He will find a way to foil our plans."

"I think it's safe to say, you're not known as the optimist of the vampire race." Xander broke the tension Angel's words had caused.

Buffy sighed "Look, We'll go down to the location of the porthole and do some recon. We'll assemble all the slayers who are ready to fight, and we'll give Exmaunigan one hell of a battle until the eclipse is over. It's our only option."

"Well, let's not be so hasty. There's always another option." Xander jumped in and Buffy glared at him.

"I thought we went over this last night Xander…that is _not_ an option."

"What's he talking about, Buff?" Willow asked her best friend curiously.

Buffy swallowed hard before Angel spoke up "If demon blood is spilt in the porthole during the eclipse than every demon will be sent to a different dimension instead of every human."

Giles eyes lit up "Well, now that would be…" As he locked eyes with Buffy, it occurred to him what she was thinking "Oh yes, I see."

The redhead looked puzzled "What? Shouldn't catapulting all demons to some other dimension be good?" She looked around the room, realizing her mistake "Oh! Yeah we can't do that."

Buffy sighed. There was no way she would go through with a plan that would likely send Spike and Angel to hell. After all, not all demons were bad, and it was her job to protect all things good, not just humans. She refused to admit to herself that her concern went deeper than that…much deeper.

"So when do we get to see this porthole thing?" The brunette slayer asked.

"We're going tomorrow. Apparently it's in some cathedral about ten minutes from here."

"A porthole to hell in a cathedral…that's ironic. I knew there was a reason I hated going to church on Sundays." Xander mused.

"Ooo the cathedrals here are so pretty. The stained glass makes me tingly."

The entire room faced Andrew with a look of disgust, "What?! Deny it all you want, but you all get just as excited by Italian craftsmanship as I do."

"I don't think we get as excited about anything as you do." Xander responded dryly.

"Anyway, why don't you all get settled in. You must be tired. We'll head to the church tomorrow morning." Buffy addressed the group.

Spike raised his hand as if in a classroom "Uh slight kink in the plan, pet. I think you'll have a harder time fightin' off the demon army if me and Captain Forehead are big piles of dust."

She frowned "Oh…well…"

"Me and Spike will check out the place tonight." Angel resolved.

"Oh goody. I've been dying for one of our evening strolls. It's much less romantic wandering the streets of Rome with someone you actually like." The blonde vampire's voice dripped with insult and sarcasm.

"Gee Spike, when I was being tortured in the Amazon for months, I really missed your charm." The elder vampire replied.

"Are you two quite sure you can remain civil?" Giles asked concernedly.

Angel sighed "There are more important things happening here than Spike's inferiority complex."

"_My_ inferiority complex?! You're the one who turns up here just as soon as I found my bird and was about to make a move."

"Excuse me?" Buffy interrupted "I hope by 'your bird' you don't mean me."

Angel grinned at his long time counterpart "Looks like she shot you down."

Spike huffed "She just doesn't want to hurt your feelings, you poof."

"Will you two kindly restrain yourselves? There are more pressing issues at hand than your romantic quarrels." The ever-wise British man reasoned.

"Yeah, like I am in desperate need of a bath. There were a bunch of bratty little kids on the plane, and I think one of the monsters sneezed on me." Faith grimaced.

"Andrew can you take everyone to their rooms, so they can get settled, please?" Buffy asked.

They followed Andrew to their respective rooms, leaving Buffy and her two exes in awkward silence.

Buffy cleared her throat and walked over to a massive desk. She flipped her long blonde locks over her shoulder as she walked, and both vampires inhaled her scent. Spike sighed slightly in contentment. It had been far too long since he had smelled her. Angel pulled a vile out of his pocket. It glowed blue. He eyed it carefully as Spike eyed him. Placing the vile back in his pocket he addressed the blondes.

"I'm still feeling a little tired. I think I better lay down for a while since Spike and I are heading to the cathedral tonight."

His ex-girlfriend smiled "Okay. Have a nice rest."

He nodded as he left. Buffy's green eyes met Spike's blues, and she quickly broke the glance.

"So…how is it you're not thinking of droppin' in some demon blood in that hole? It'd solve all your problems."

"How can you ask me that?" She was appalled. He could hear it in her voice.

"I get it. Trying to protect your love, right?" he asked snidely.

"Yes, protecting my love." As she replied, their eyes locked. They both understood the poignancy of her words, though neither addressed just which "love" she referred to.

Spike cleared his throat "No worries, love. I have a feeling it's all going to work out for you and the ponce."

She sighed heavily "Spike, what the hell are you talking about?" Her voice was strained and stressed.

His sad eyes found hers "Nothing really, just…have hope. I think you're going to get everything you want."

"You have no idea what I want." Buffy's words bordering on angry. She hated being told what she wanted or didn't want.

"I suppose you're right, pet. I only know what I want." He answered back.

She could feel her breath and heart rate speeding up "And what's that?"

He leaned in til he could feel her breath on his face "The only thing I will ever want. Naturally, the only thing I can never have."

His hand stroked her blonde waves once before he turned and walked out. Buffy's chest heaved as it always did when he came in contact with her. For the life of her, she never understood the effect he had on her body. Not to mention her mind and soul…

* * *

_Before him stood a heavenly vision. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his many years. She was dressed in flowing white. Surrounding her were a million flowers of every shape, size, and color. If he had breath, it would have been stolen from him in that very instant._

_"It's you." he spoke out, barely managing the words._

_"Well duh, silly. No one else could pull off this outfit." She answered, showing him her pearly smile. God, he had missed that smile._

_He took a seat next to her on the bench made of marble. All he could do was stare into her exquisite face._

_She smiled "I missed you, Broody boy."_

_He smiled in kind "You have no idea how much I miss you everyday."_

_Her eyes looked away "I know. I can see your heart. I've always been able to see your heart."_

_"Sometimes I forget I even have one. It doesn't beat. It's empty."_

_She looked angry at his words "Don't you ever say that. Your heart…empty couldn't be farther from the truth. It may not beat, but your heart is the fullest I have ever known. Your heart is extraordinary."_

_He sighed in peace. She always had this effect on him, a calming effect, "What do I do?"_

_She wrapped her arm around him "You do what is in your heart. I told you it's a good one. It'll tell you what you need to know."_

_"That's just it. I'm not sure I can hear it."_

_"When the time comes, you will, loud and clearly. Trust me."_

_"I trust you. You are my dearest friend. You give me hope." He stared at her, simply soaking her presence in._

_"And you gave me hope and strength. I'll be there with you on that day, like I always am. You won't see me fighting with you, but I'll be there. You'll feel me."_

_Their eyes locked as she cupped his face in her hands. He leaned into her touch as he felt sparks emanate his entire body. They were floating…floating above and beyond the clouds and the moon…floating…_

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That night, after Dawn returned from school and had the chance to hug Spike to the point where if he were breathing, he'd have suffocated, the two immortals walked the streets of Rome in silence. They both had many things on their minds: Fighting demons, A certain slayer, and a small glowing vile of blue liquid.

"So mate, were you planning on sharing the little bit of information you're keeping from me?"

"Spike, what are you talking about?" Angel asked irritably.

"I'm talking about that stuff you're carrying around in your pocket." He replied.

Angel's demeanor stiffened "What stuff?"

"Oh come off it. I'm a vampire too, you know? I can sense what that is." Spike spoke with determination. He wasn't one to back down, especially with something like this.

"What do you want to know, Spike?"

"Well, it is what I think it is then?" He asked.

Angel sighed "Yes."

"Bloody hell…"

"I know." The older one responded.

"I suppose that tiny bottle's all you got…" Spike tried to hide the hope in his voice.

"Yeah, and there is no way of making more."

"So, exactly when were you planning on telling Buffy that everything is going to change for her forever?"

To be continued…

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**A/N: I hope you liked it!! Please leave a review!! I love them and you!!**

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	4. Inspiration

**A/N: Thanks for the awesome reviews!! I would really like to see some more though. Pretty please!! Lol anywho, this chapter has a lot more Spuffy goodness in it since there hasn't been enough up until now. With a story of this scale, I haven't been able to focus just on them, even though they are the greatest. I also wanted to make this at least partially centered around another couple I love to bits. I'm sure you guys have figured out what couple. So let's get back to the story now! Enjoy!!**

**Chapter 4: Inspiration **

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The sun shown brightly in the clear sky as Buffy Summers walked the streets of cobblestone. As she stared down at her stylish boots made of a dark brown leather, her mind reeled. As soon as she experienced a coherent thought, her brain would seemingly jump to an entirely different train of thought. She hadn't felt this out of focus in quite sometime. She remembered with perfect clarity the last time she felt this twisted up inside. The First was reeking havoc on her world, and everyone she loved had cast her out. She was lost and broken. There was only one thing that brought her back, one thing that gave her the strength and the courage she needed to keep fighting. There was only one person who saved her. There was only one Spike. It was Spike who was there for her when no one else was. It was Spike who encouraged her and pushed her to keep fighting, to face the bleak depths of the future. And here she stood, over a year later, facing another apocalypse, and he was once again by her side, something she never believed possible. She had dreamed it. Everyday and every night she dreamed that he was next to her, that she could have a chance to speak once more those three words she had uttered to him the day he made the ultimate sacrifice, so why hadn't she told him? Why did she choose to kick him rather than run into his arms and kiss him the way she desperately wanted to? Why was she always wrecking it?

"You must be overwhelmed." Willow spoke out.

Buffy eyed her curiously "Huh?"

"It's just with both Angel and Spike being in town with not so great news…you must have much wiggins." The redhead clarified.

She nodded "Oh…yeah…"

"Buffy, are you okay?" The witch asked concernedly.

"Yeah B. You look like you're gonna hurl or something." Faith added.

"They're right Buffy, you don't look good." Dawn wrapped her arm around her sister.

"I'm seriously fine you guys, but thanks for all the compliments."

"Ah I getcha now." Faith chuckled slightly as she walked alongside Buffy.

The blonde slayer looked to the brunette in puzzlement "You get what?"

"I know what's got your panties all twisted, B."

"Must we discuss Buffy's undergarments?" Giles asked, in a slightly disturbed manner, from up ahead.

"Faith, what are you talking about?" Buffy asked, already appearing irritated. It was amazing how easily the other slayer could get under her skin.

"What I'm sayin' is I know what's got you doin' the mambo in your brain, B." Faith boasted proudly.

"And what might that be?"

"You're totally freaked about your undead boy-toys being back." She finally elaborated.

Buffy scrunched up her nose "You think with everything that's going on, I'm worried about Spike and Angel?"

"Oh come on, you can be honest. We all know that's what you're thinking about."

Buffy ceased walking and so did the group. They all looked at her as she looked back at them. Her gaze traveled from Faith to Willow, Giles, Xander, Dawn, and Kennedy, who had arrived the night before.

"You all think I'm freaking out about guys right now?" She asked in a slightly offended manner.

The entire groups' eyes, save for Faith's, who never seemed to feel shame, moved to the ground as guilty looks crossed their faces.

"See, told ya." Faith chirped in vindication.

Buffy sighed "I cannot believe it. You guys really think I'm just some love-struck little girl obsessing about boys when all human lives are in my hands?" She paused momentarily "'Cause I think you're right." She admitted begrudgingly.

Willow smiled sympathetically, "Aaaww it's totally understandable, Buffy."

Kennedy nodded "Yeah it is."

Dawn pulled her sister into a tight embrace "It'll be okay, Buffy."

"What I want to know is which vamp you're thinking about more." Faith added curiously.

Dawn pulled away from Buffy to look her in the eye "Yeah, Buffy, who do you want to be with, Spike or Angel?"

Suddenly feeling an enormous amount of scrutiny on her, Buffy resumed walking "Never mind, I don't want to talk about this."

She heard several groans as Xander spoke up "Come on guys, maybe Buffy has moved on from the bloodsucking duo. Did you ever think about that?"

Even Giles eyed Xander like he was crazy. Of course Faith was not ready to let the subject drop "I think I know exactly who B is picturing doing the nasty with right now." She smirked triumphantly as Giles rolled his eyes at her terminology.

Buffy glared at her "Faith, you couldn't possibly know what I'm thinking. Thinking is a concept beyond you."

The brunette continued to smile "Ouch B, you can retract the claws, I'm just trying to help."

"You want to help? Then let's go stake out the Cathedral where we are going to have to fight World War III." The blonde turned and began walking briskly toward her destination.

The cathedral was very old and enormous in size. The windows were covered in exquisite stained glass. Entering, they found the place empty with rows and rows of unoccupied pews. At the end stood a massive crucifix, and Buffy couldn't help but be reminded of the night she realized that Spike had his soul restored. It was such a shock to know the lengths he had gone to just to be worthy of her, but then again, he was always doing things like that, always going to whatever lengths necessary to win her approval, yet she had been so stingy with it, never really offering it until the end.

Five feet away from the alter bearing the cross, was the spot Angel had indicated as the opening of the porthole. Right where Buffy now stood, the floor would open up and give a demon the opportunity to send every human being out of this dimension. She wasn't about to let that happen.

"Can't I just do a shielding spell to keep the demon army away from the porthole until the eclipse is over?" Willow asked optimistically.

Buffy sighed "We mentioned that to Angel, and he said that this Exmaunigan guy has lots of power. I'm sure he's thought of that and will have a way to break the shield."

The redhead's shoulders dropped in disappointment. "Darn."

"Our best hope is just to fight them off as best as we can."

"Sounds great to me." Faith cheered.

Kennedy nodded "I hear that!"

Buffy however, could not muster the enthusiasm of her fellow slayers. Perhaps it was the fact that she had been living through this stuff the longest and had certainly been through the most, but she knew all to well that this whole thing had a strong chance of ending badly, and even if they were successful, many lives would be lost, possibly the lives of people she loved, and that was something Buffy would never get used to.

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That night, after informing the rest of the slayers of the incredible task ahead of them, Buffy stood on the balcony in the cool night breeze, when she heard the rustle of a coat behind her.

"Hello, Spike."

He came up on her left side and nodded "Buffy."

She looked up at his face and smiled slightly before turning back to looking out at the city. A few moments passed in silence before she finally spoke up.

"I thought about you a lot today." Her voice was quiet.

He furrowed his brow in surprise "Did you now?"

She simply nodded before continuing "I kept thinking about how hard I was on you. Even after everything you did time and time again, I was still cold to you. I think I still am."

Listening to the somber sincerity in her voice threw him, "Nah I can take it. Reckon I deserve it."

Buffy sighed heavily "Stop."

His nose scrunched up "Stop what?"

She stared him directly in the eye "Stop acting like you're unworthy or you deserve to be treated like crap. It's not true. It's just not."

He sighed "Buffy, I've done a lot of things in my life I'm not proud of…"

She cut him off "Yeah and you've also done a lot of things you should be proud of. You took care of Dawn when I was gone, you fought alongside me and my friends and helped save the world countless times. Hell, you died saving the world. I'm proud of you, Spike."

He stared into her green eyes, illuminated by the moonlight, as her hand traveled up to his face. Her fingers delicately traced the line of his forehead, they ran over the scar above his eye, and down his cheek, where she rested her hand. Feeling her warm palm pressed so lovingly against his cheek caused his chest to tighten and his stomach to knot. His hand met hers as he pulled it away from his face and cradled it in both of his. His lips placed a tiny kiss on the back of her hand as he pulled her flush against his chest for a tight embrace. Her head rested on his chest, and he could feel her warm breath there. His arm wrapped tightly around her as he began to run his fingers through her silky blonde hair. He kissed the top of her head as she wrapped her arms around him, her fingers roaming his back along his spine, causing him to shiver.

"I missed this, love. Everyday for a year, I missed this." Spike whispered softly into her ear.

Buffy smiled "Believe me, so did I."

As she replied, a thought occurred to her. She pulled away and smiled widely "Come with me. There's something I want to show you."

He didn't have to be told twice. Locking his hand with hers, he allowed her to lead the way.

Having witnessed the display on the balcony, Angel sighed and made his way to his room. As he opened the door he was shocked to find an attractive brunette in his room.

"What are you doing here?" He asked in puzzlement.

Kennedy jumped and turned to face him "Oh sorry, Angel. I got lost. This place is huge. Have you seen Willow?"

"Not recently."

She smiled awkwardly "Well, thanks anyway. I'll just be going."

As the slayer left, the vampire collapsed upon his bed. Everything was so confusing. He couldn't deny that it was strange seeing Buffy so close with Spike. The thought of those two together still irked him. Well, any thought of Spike irked him. That was just their relationship. Pulling his coat off, he grasped two things from his pockets. One was a vile filled with glowing blue liquid. The other was a tiny golden frame encompassing a photo of someone he missed greatly. His eyes traveled back and forth between the two items, and he couldn't help wishing, wishing for so many things, each wish contradicting the other.

Angel sighed as he placed both the sacred items back in his coat pockets, gently placing the coat on a nearby chair. He placed his head on his pillow, as he allowed dreams to take him over.

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_There was a thick mist all around him. He could barely make out what was in front of him. He wasn't sure if it was night or day. Nothing was clear at first. Finally there was a glow. Some kind of artificial light illuminated the place. He knew it was not the sun, for he hadn't turned to ash. Ahead of him he saw Buffy. She looked beautiful as she always did. Her golden hair flowed, blowing in the breeze. She was breathtaking, that is, if he had breath to take. Not only did she look beautiful, but she looked happy, blissful even. It was then he noticed a hand entwined with hers. It was Spike's hand. Angel watched as they smiled at each other. He could see the affection and dare he say…love in their eyes, and it pained him slightly, but that pain was nothing compared to the pain he felt next._

_He looked behind him to see the stunningly gorgeous face of Cordelia Chase. She smiled at him as she always did, and he couldn't help the smile he returned. All of the light that shown in this place seemed to emanate from her. Her arm extended, beckoning him to her. Looking down at his hands to the syringe of sapphire liquid, he felt the ache of confusion. His eyes traveled back to the brunette who now called out to him, before his gaze made it's way to the blonde woman. Buffy looked to him and smiled. Staring into her face, he stabbed his arm with the needle, pressing the liquid into his veins. In an instant, the light began to fade. Looking behind him, he saw the sorrowful face of Cordelia, slowly fade away. It hurt like nothing had ever hurt before. At that moment he heard a loud cry. Turning his eyes back to Buffy, he saw that her hands were no longer wrapped in Spike's. The vampire had disappeared. Buffy simply screamed as tears ran down her face. Angel rushed to her and attempted to pull her into his arms. She pushed him back angrily._

_"Why, Angel?! How could you do it?!" She cried out._

_He felt his heart race "I…I thought it's what you wanted."_

_She shook her head violently "No! Get away!"_

_He moved toward her as she backed up "But Buffy…"_

_She pushed him hard "I said stay away from me!"_

He woke up in his bed in a cold sweat, telling himself it was just a dream, that it meant nothing, though he had a sinking suspicion it meant everything.

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After walking the streets of Rome in a comfortable silence, Buffy stopped in front of a small building. She smiled up at Spike as she pulled out keys from her pocket.

"We're here." She said as she turned a key and opened the door, before pausing "Just promise me you won't laugh or make fun, 'cause I swear I'll stake you!"

He smiled at her and made an X on his chest "Cross my unbeating heart, pet."

She sighed nervously "Okay."

Buffy opened the door and flicked the light switch. As soon as Spike took in his surroundings he was in shock.

"I don't just sketch. I've actually been taking classes whenever I can get away from training the slayers. I've learned lots of cool things."

His eyes scanned the room in awe. If his heart still beat, it would have been pounding, for what he saw, he could hardly fathom. It was an art studio that while he had never stepped foot in before, was encompassed with him. There were paintings, mosaics, and drawings, all to his great surprise, involving him. The large tiled mosaic on the wall was a grand design of himself and Buffy lying wrapped in each other's arms in bed. It was a night he remembered well, for it was the best night of his existence. Looking on at the paintings, he found one of he and Buffy connected in passion as the building collapsed around them, another of himself cradling a cross, smoke rising from his body. He found one of them seated on Buffy's old porch, his arm upon her back in comfort as she cried. Another with his face badly bruised as she kissed his lips softly in gratitude. He found another painting of himself kneeling before Buffy in his crypt as he serenaded her, one of him hugging Giles when he believed himself to be his son, one of him holding onto Buffy's bloody hands with numbers underneath that read "147 days yesterday, 148 today". And finally his eyes locked on the last painting. It was simply two hands entwined in flames. Spike could not help but draw in unnecessary breath as he turned to face his love.

Buffy blushed slightly "It's the only time I felt inspired…when I thought of you." She looked away quickly, embarrassed by her candor.

Spike slowly made his way over to her and lifted her chin to look into her eyes. For a moment he just relished in the closeness and the beauty of her face. He then lowered his head to place a tender kiss upon her lips, and suddenly for the first time, he felt alive again.

To be continued…

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**A/N: Hope you liked it!! I'm thinking it should be just a couple more chapters more!!** **Please Review!!**


	5. Million Dollar Questions

**A/N: Thanks for all the wonderful reviews!! I'm glad that everyone seems to be fond of my Faith! I really enjoy writing her, so it means a lot that you guys like her!! There shouldn't be too much left in this story. I'm not big on the super long fics. Lol but I am going to be starting a new story very soon called "True Love", and I'm super excited about it so I hope you check it out once it's up!! Also don't forget about my Angel/That 70s Show crossover "Monsterfest"!! For now enjoy chapter 5 of Into The Light!!!**

**Chapter 5:** **Million Dollar Questions  
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"Oh come on Buffy!! Pleeeeaaaase!!" The teen's full lips formed a pout as she pleaded.

Buffy sighed "For the last time, no!"

"It's just not fair." Dawn crossed her arms and pouted.

"What's not fair, Dawnie?" The fiery-haired witch asked the girl she considered her own baby sister, as she approached her and stroked her hair.

"Dawn keeps begging me to tell her what happened between me and Spike last night." The blonde's eyes rolled in exasperation.

"Ooo I hate to say it, B, but I'm with the little girl on this one." Faith's eyes gleamed. She always enjoyed getting a rise out of her slayer counterpart.

"Hey! I am not a 'little girl'!" Dawn screeched in fury, setting a death glare on Faith.

The brunette slayer's hands rose in defense "Sorry sugar." Her attention turned to Buffy "Damn B, your little sis is scarier than you are."

Buffy couldn't help but smile in pride at her sister, before smirking devilishly "Yeah she's tough, until she comes across a spider. Then it's 'watch out hills, Dawn's coming, and she's running.'"

Dawn's large eyes rolled "Arachnophobia is a legitimate disease. You'll be sorry when a giant spider swallows me whole."

The elder sibling shrugged "Eh I might just send it a thank you card."

"You guys, maybe we shouldn't joke about giant beasty bugs, because in our world it could happen." Willow added with a weary look.

"Well if my annoying sister would just tell me what happened between her and Spike last night, I'd behave…well I'd try to at least."

"No." Was all she said in response.

"Ah come on, B, what's the big? Just tell us about all the kinky sex you had with Spike."

Willow and Dawn grimaced at Faith's words "Well, we don't need visual aids or anything. Just tell us, are you and Spike back together?"

Buffy looked on at the three sets of eyes that were staring her down, waiting for an answer with desperate anticipation.

"Uh…I don't know?" She wasn't sure exactly what she and Spike were now.

"You don't know? That's it? Lame." Dawn frowned at her sister.

Green eyes rolled "Yeah yeah. Now get your backpack and get to school. If your tardy again, I won't let you train with the slayers tonight."

She squeaked as she flipped her long, straight brown locks over her shoulder and marched off to class. Buffy smiled having averted her sister's endless questions.

"So B babe…you gonna dish now that it's just us big girls, what the hell happened with you and the vamp last night?"

So she had averted Dawn's inquiries but not Faith or Willow's "We kissed."

Faith scrunched up her nose "That's it? I figured after he came back from the land of the dead after saving the world and all, you'd of at least given him a quick romp in the sack."

Buffy grimaced "You never cease to surprise me with your class and elegance, Faith."

"Hey it may not be classy, but at least I know how to get the job done."

"I'll have you know I am _very _good at getting the _job_ done." Buffy spoke through gritted teeth.

Once again Faith's hands went up in defense "Relax B, I'm sure you got the moves. I just want you to make use of 'em, that's all."

She sighed "Well, thank you for the advice Faith, but I don't think I can deal with your tutelage until I've had some coffee."

Buffy marched off to the kitchen, leaving Willow and Faith alone in the lavish living room. Sitting on the arm of one of the couches, Faith eyed Willow curiously. There was something about the witch that intrigued her.

"So Witchy Woman, how are things with the bossy gal, Kennedy?"

Willow stared at the other woman in shock. It wasn't common for Faith to just spark up a conversation with her like that, not to mention the use of the nickname.

"Uh…good?" She stammered a reply.

Faith chuckled "You're that sure hah?"

The redhead straightened out her blouse and huffed "Of course I'm sure. Kennedy is great, not that it's any of your business." Willow wasn't sure why this topic of conversation made her so jumpy. Perhaps it was that things weren't going all that great with her girlfriend, or perhaps it was because she was having a conversation with _this_ woman in particular.

She nodded "Chill Red, I'm just asking."

Willow eyed her curiously "Why are you asking?"

Faith broke the momentary eye-lock, as her eyes traveled to the floor "Just lookin out for ya, Will. Your girl's been actin' weird the past couple days. Normally she's all bossy annoying, but she kinda seems like a ghost or something. She hasn't been bitching at all. So I just wondered if everything is cool between you."

Her words made Willow's mind race. It was true, Kennedy had been quiet since she arrived in Rome. Maybe something happened when they were apart. Maybe she had cheated. Willow was surprised at how little she seemed to care. The thought of her girlfriend cheating on her should make her sick, but why was it that the nervous knots in her stomach seemed to have nothing to do with _that_ brunette?

* * *

As Buffy entered the large kitchen, she smiled at the sight before her. Spike stood in his typical black jeans and shirt, in front of the microwave.

"You know, it's like 7 a.m., you are allowed to have rumpled hair." She reached her hand up and messed up his perfectly slicked back platinum locks.

"Ey! Watch the do, woman!" He exclaimed, as he flattened his hair.

She giggled "You are such a girl about that damn hair."

He took a long sip of his freshly heated blood before smirking at her "I think you and I both know I'm far from bein' a girl, pet."

At the delicious smirk on his face, she felt a tingle through her entire body. Oh he definitely wasn't girl.

She poured coffee into a cup as she continued to tease him "Yeah okay, poetry-boy. Any nice sonnets you'd like read to me this morning?"

"Shove off, you love that I'm poetic." He slinked toward her with a grin "I am the only one who can make you weak in those beautiful knees of yours with just a few words, goldilocks."

She let out a giddy giggle, and he couldn't help but laugh in return.

"So what was the bit nagging you about earlier?" Spike asked as he took another drink of blood.

Buffy rolled her eyes "She was dying to know what happened between us last night."

"Why didn't you just tell her about the hot, sweaty shaggin' I gave you?" He pulled her to him tightly with a slight growl.

"There was no hot, sweaty shagging." She smiled up at him.

"Sorry, love. In my version there was." He leaned in to kiss her, but she pulled away.

"Spike, you just ate blood! There's still some on your lips, and I am not going on the liquid diet, if you know what I mean." She grimaced in disgust.

His sparkling blues rolled "Fine no kissing…on the lips anyway." He pulled her back to him and tilted her neck, laying a gentle kiss upon it. Angel rushed in and pulled them apart, throwing Spike against the wall.

"Buffy, are you okay?" The tall vampire asked in concern as he grasped her shoulders tightly.

She pushed him away from her "I'm fine. What the hell do you think you're doing, Angel?"

He looked confused "I thought…I thought he bit you."

"What? Why?"

Spike made his way over to the two of them as Angel's gaze went back and forth between the blondes.

"Well, his lips had blood on them, and they were on your neck. I just…" Seeing Buffy's unimpressed facial expression, he sighed "I'm sorry."

It was Buffy's turn to sigh "We need to talk."

She flashed an apologetic smile at Spike as she led Angel out of the Kitchen and into the empty library. Spike couldn't help the twinge of jealousy that shot through his undead body at the sight of his Buffy walking off with Angel. Though he supposed he couldn't really call her _his_ Buffy. Captain Forehead had made that clear over the past year, constantly demeaning him and berating what he shared with Buffy, making it apparent that Buffy could never be his. "That's why Buffy never loved you. You're not me." The words his grandsire had spoken out still played in his head. Maybe he was right. In fact, he probably was right. She had undoubtedly lied to him when she spoke those three words he had waited ages to hear from her lips. The pompous sod was right about everything, but Spike intended to soak her in while he had the chance, for this upcoming battle would not be something he would survive, he just knew it.

* * *

Angel leaned against the massive marble desk as Buffy stood before him looking grave.

"I think we need to talk about Spike." She spoke resolutely.

His eyes met the Persian rug "Yeah okay." He relented.

She sighed heavily. Angel was her first love. She still cared for him, she always would, but over the years things had changed so much. She was a little girl when she loved him, innocent and naïve, but now she was a woman, strong and wise. Part of that was Spike. She wasn't sure what was happening between them, but she knew that her feelings for him were strong, but hurting Angel was just not something she wanted. It was all so confusing.

"Look, Spike and I have this huge history, and last night…" She was cut off by his words.

"I saw you two snuggled up on the balcony."

"Okay, so if you saw us together because of your incredibly creepy voyeurism, then why did you think he was attacking me this morning?" She asked in puzzlement.

He shrugged "I don't know. I guess it's just my instinct to protect you."

She smiled sadly "That's sweet, but I don't need protection. I'm not some weepy little girl. I'm the slayer. Well, the original one anyway, and I certainly don't need protection from Spike."

"I know…So…are you two…together?"

"That seems to be the million dollar question today. I honestly don't know if we're together or not, but I do know that he's in…"

"Your heart. I remember." He smiled sadly, remembering the night he gave her the amulet.

She took a seat next to him on the desk "You're in my heart too, Angel. You always will be, but things have changed so much. We're both different people. All that time apart altered things. Then me and Spike happened, and you weren't exactly pining over me. Your attention was focused on someone else."

"Cordy." Was his only response. It didn't even take him a moment to know exactly who Buffy referred to. He knew that just as much as he wasn't thinking of her when he looked into Cordelia's chocolate brown eyes, Buffy was not thinking of him when she stared into Spike's icy blue ones, no matter what he tried to claim with Spike. He knew they had both moved on, their hearts shifted to other people, He supposed he just always believed that one day they would shift back.

"Look, I don't know what's going to happen in the future, what with this epic battle we have to face, but I know that we'll get through it. I need you there. I can't win this war without you." She implored sincerely.

He smiled a small, accommodating smile "I'll be there."

"And I need you to be nice to Spike." She insisted.

His hands flew up "Whoa there, that's asking a lot. Fighting an apocalypse is one thing, but being nice to Captain Peroxide is just too much."

"Angel." Buffy said warningly.

His brown eyes rolled "Fine! I'll _try_ to play nice, but just so you know, I hate that guy."

She chuckled "Duly noted."

* * *

As Willow sat in her room, she tried to focus on anything but long dark hair and the smell of leather, vanilla, and cinnamon. She was so _not_ having these thoughts! This was the crazy killer slutbag, Faith, after all!

"For the love of Hecate, get a grip!" She chastised herself as the bedroom door opened, and an absent-minded Kennedy stumbled in muttering to herself.

"It's not there. I can't find it. Where can it be?" She babbled as Willow approached her.

"Hey good-lookin', whadya lose?" She asked in a bubbly manner. As long as she focused on Kennedy, all these Faithful thoughts would go away…She hoped.

Kennedy jumped, startled by Willow's presence "Oh…uh…my favorite axe. I can't find it." She stammered.

The redhead smiled "I'll do a locater spell if you need me to."

Something clicked in the brunette's brain "How exactly does a locater spell go?"

* * *

Meanwhile, a certain slayer was working off some tension in the training room, attacking the punching bag with immense force, when a certain vampire came up behind her.

"So who's the poor bloke got you out for bloody murder?" Spike asked as he took a seat on the bench behind her.

"Who says it's a bloke, blondie?" Faith asked as she wiped the sweat from her forehead.

He grinned widely "Wow slayer, I didn't know you batted for the other team."

She scrunched up her nose as she took a seat next to him "I never got that expression. If you're a girl who likes other girls, then shouldn't it be battin' for the same team?"

He nodded "Ne'er thought of it like that. So…who's the bird?"

She laughed "There's no bird, English. I don't get attached to anyone, you know that."

"Ah so it's Red then." He spoke knowingly.

Faith scoffed "The witch? No way, man. You're way off."

"Riiiight. You've got it right bad for her, pet. You can't bloody well fool me."

She punched him in the arm "Cuz you sure as hell got it bad for B."

He nodded and smiled "Got that right. I'm a bleedin' Nancy boy when it comes to that woman."

"Where is Queen B?"

"Reckon still off with Captain Forehead." He answered stiffly.

"B off with Angel?" At his nod she gave a sympathetic look "Ouch that's gotta sting."

He shrugged "Nothin' I'm not used to."

Feeling incredible sympathy for this bizarrely sensitive vampire, Faith placed her arm around him and gently patted his back.

"It'll all turn out cool, ya crazy vamp." She assured.

As Buffy walked into the training room, her eyes bugged out. Seeing Faith sitting so close to _her_ vampire brought up strange feelings of jealousy. Why did she feel like she had been here before?

She walked up to the twosome and cleared her throat.

Seeing the look of anger in Buffy's eyes, Faith removed her arm from Spike "Hey B. How's it hangin'?"

"Good." Her teeth clenched "How are you, Faith?"

"Five by five." She rose to her feet "But I got some place to be. Catch you to lovebirds later."

"Have a blast wearing red tonight!" Spike shouted to her with a wicked grin upon his face.

"Bite me, Blondie." Was all Faith said as she left the room.

Buffy wearily took the seat that the other slayer had just vacated "So you two seemed cozy."

Spike couldn't help but relish in her jealousy. She was so cute. "No worries, kitten. That bird's not interested in me, that's for sure."

She pouted "I was so _not _worried."

His arm snaked around her "It's okay, love. You're sexy when you jealous over me."

Her emerald eyes made a circular motion "Don't make me stake you!"

They both laughed for a moment before the atmosphere became serious "So how'd it go with the wanker?"

"Be nice." She instructed.

"Love, there's not a bloody chance in Hell of me being nice to that ponce."

"He said he'd be nice to you." She countered.

Spike scoffed "Course he did. He'd tell you anything you want to hear, pathetic sod."

She pushed him back and quickly straddled his lap "Spike, behave."

"If you want me to behave, I think you might be sitting the wrong way." He pressed her against the hardness in his jeans "But alright, I'll _try_ to be nice to Captain Forehead, but just so you know, I hate that guy."

She laughed on the inside at how similar both vampires' words were. She ground her center against him teasingly "Maybe Angel's not the only one I can bend to my will." She smirked devilishly.

He groaned "You're playing with fire, Slayer."

"I guess I might just get burned." She leaned down and sucked his bottom lip into her mouth as he began to kiss her back hungrily. Unfortunately, she pulled away much too soon for his liking.

Buffy looked down into Spike's glorious eyes "You know, you are the only one who hasn't asked me if we're together."

He shrugged "Doesn't matter. Whether we say we're together now or not, it won't change anything. We've always been together, you and me, and we always will be. No matter what. Just want you to know that, love."

His voice seemed to trail off sadly to her, but she couldn't understand why. She simply smiled and attached her lips to his again. She wasn't sure what was going to happen in the future, but she was sure he was right. They had always been together, maybe not technically, but they were Buffy and Spike, connected by some unseen force, and for the first time in her life, she admitted to herself that she hoped that connection lasted forever.

* * *

"She has yet to acquire it, Master." The spindly demon chocked out nervously.

"It is irrelevant. There are more pressing tasks ahead of her. I will make her puny mind see the big picture. I will not allow my plans to be foiled." The large, yellow, horned demon spoke with immeasurable depth to his voice.

"Of course not, Master. The plan is in motion."

"Yes, and in mere days, the humans will not know what hit them."

To be continued…

* * *

**A/N: Well, I hope you liked it!! Please review!!!**


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